1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the identification of the authenticity of goods over the internet. The present invention particularly relates to a method and system for authenticating goods over the internet involving authentication pictures and identification numbers, and the like regardless of how the goods are sold.
2. Description of Related Art
The sale of goods over the internet has grown substantially over the past decade. Goods purchased via e-commerce come from a variety of sources including wholesale, retail from established business and non-established business, auction houses, resellers, individual sellers, and the like. In some areas, more goods are purchased online than in conventional brick and mortar retail establishments. Along with this rapid growth of goods sold over the internet is a rapidly growing problem with the inability to tell the difference between authentic goods being offered for sale and counterfeit goods. This is especially true with designer clothing and with designer clothing accessories, such as purses and the like. One advantage of brick and mortar outlets is that the buyer can physically inspect the goods offered for sale. On the other hand, while the purchaser will likely see a picture and description of the product being offered for sale over the internet, this is no guarantee that the product is not counterfeit, off-grade, out of specification, stolen, or a guarantee that the goods are even in the seller's possession. It is also likely that the seller may be unfamiliar with the particulars of an item or its brand (i.e. not an expert in identification of the goods). Plus, the seller may not be aware of the authenticity of the goods they possess (authentic or counterfeit), since the seller may have purchased goods with the same purchase issues. Further, pictures can easily be digitally doctored or taken from the internet, making it difficult to determine if the goods are originals and in the seller's possession.
To address the purchaser's concern, several methods, systems and the like have been developed, all with varying success and applicability. Various forms of honesty checks of the seller are used to determine the past performance in selling goods. However, as noted above even the seller may not be aware of the problem of authenticity and unless the purchaser is sophisticated, this method may not solve the problem. In addition, the manufacturer may include indicia of authentic manufacture like a certificate, tag or the like, but this does not guarantee the seller has the product in hand and doesn't solve the problem for sale of used goods or goods without any indicia that are indeed authentic. Because this is especially a problem with high value luxury products and products with high recognition value, the value of goods misidentified has reached unmanageable levels. Accordingly, there is still a huge need for a method or system to protect purchasers, to make certain the goods they are considering for purchase are both authentic and in the seller's possession.